On the flip side, the songs pertaining to relationships and old flames are the best songs on the album. Drake attempts to go in on these songs, but ends up failing miserably. With the exception of “Still Here,” songs such as “Hype,” “Grammys,” and “Pop Style” showcase almost amateur-level verses. Ironically, Drake fails to impress in almost every song in which he brags about his success. As usual, Drake takes the time to pay homage to his hometown, Toronto, in the song “9.” He raps about his unparalleled success and how he turned his city, the six, “upside down, it’s a nine now.” “Weston Road Flows” continues this same theme, taking the listener on a trip down memory lane to the place where the rapper was raised. The album begins with a slow, dramatic song titled “Keep the Family Close.” In the track, Drake delves into his trust issues and how people continue to wrong him, even after he gives them everything. He uses Views to dissect the different types of relationships in his life from the multiple women in every city, to his family, Drake explores topics such as trust, money, and fame. With 11 of the album’s 20 tracks trending on social media, Drake dominates the music industry once again, while finding an outlet for his feelings. Industry forecasters suggest the hip-hop star’s latest effort could sell more than 800,000 copies in the U.S. According to Billboard, “ Drake’s new Views album is set for a spectacular debut at No. Exclusively released for streaming on Apple Music, listeners can also purchase the album on iTunes.Īlthough it has only been a few days, many are already predicting that Views will reign as a hit. For all intents and purposes, the Drake of Views is the same one we got on If You’re Reading This and What a Time, but if his previous proper album ( Nothing Was the Same) foretold anything, it’s that the man peering down from CN Tower sees things differently than the rest of us.Last Friday, Drake released his highly anticipated album, Views. He isn’t too much for the world, though, ruminating on his position as one of music’s biggest names-and those who’d rather he wasn’t-on songs like “Still Here,” “Hype,” and “Grammys.” Maybe the the most affecting acknowledgment to this end is the fact that “Hotline Bling,” a strong contender for 2015 song of the summer, was such an afterthought by the time Views was released that it appears here as a bonus track. There are references here to specific people (“Redemption”), places (“Weston Road Flows”), and experiences (“Views”), along with nods to the influence of the city’s Caribbean population on “With You,” “Controlla,” and “Too Good” (which just happens to feature Rihanna). “I made a decision last night that I would die for it,” Drake raps on “9.” “Just to show the city what it takes to be alive for it.” Drake’s presence eclipsed Toronto just about as soon as So Far Gone dropped, but the city-and what it thinks of him-was never far from his mind. Views, which followed two wildly successful projects in 2015 that he’d branded as mixtapes- If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late and the Future collab What a Time to Be Alive-would confirm him as both, his penchant for immaculate songwriting still fully intact and the pressures of existing as the most popular voice in rap, as well as his hometown’s most successful export, weighing heavy on his mind. He looks less like the superhero he’d made himself into over the course of a roughly six-year rise as singer-songwriter extraordinaire and more like a troubled monarch. On the cover of his fourth studio album Views, Drake looks down from atop Toronto’s CN Tower, paying homage to the city’s notoriously frigid winter temperatures in a heavyweight shearling coat and high-cut boots.